518. - Geoff McFetridge

All right, this episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Stateside with Kai and Carter, a new podcast from The Guardian. And they are using this podcast to slow down the news and wrestle with the questions that we all have about what's happening in the world. And they do it three times a week, Jason. Does that sound familiar to you? We don't really talk about, you know, a lot of international global news items and climates and cultures and sports and things like that. We do talk about fashion and wellness, but for everything else, Kai and Carter are a great place. All right, so who couldn't use more news? Listen wherever you get your podcast. or watch on YouTube. How long gone? Live from beautiful New York City. Them jeans still in the building, a shell of the man that we know and love after two days of activating. Um, let's, let's give a kind of a wellness check for the, for the listeners. I feel good now. I, the only, we, because of these blackout curtains at the, at the lovely Carlisle. You'd be sleeping. I'd be sleeping, man. DJ'd be sleeping. Yeah. I mean, that's the thing. The blackout curtain is a gift and a curse depending on, you know, depending on what you're trying to do. What, yeah. What, how, uh, how you're trying to. Make your way in this world, in this one life that we get. I'm sure the blackout curtains are really helpful at 2.30 a.m. on Tuesday night after our show, but maybe not so helpful at kind of 10 a.m. on a Thursday when we have to record. Yeah, exactly. The blackout curtains are a blessing or a curse. Completely dependent on how much cocaine that you did the day before. Exactly. So we had our show at the Carlisle on Tuesday night. It was a pleasure. Thank you to, obviously, Stevie and Georgie and the whole Purple team and the Carlisle, but also for our good sport guests. Will Welch. You know, Jacob Gallagher, Will Welch. Nomi Frye, Bryn. Bryn. The whole squad kind of came up and helped us out, and it was a for us, by us situation.

I chose to leave around 11 p.m., go upstairs, spend $200 on a small room service dinner for two, and then Jason kind of continued the party in his lavish suite until about three. Is that fair to say? Yeah, nice wordplay. A dinner for two and a dinner until three. But my dinner was more of a... Bud Lights. Bud Lights and Tito's, powered by Tito's. Powered by Tito's. Jason's a high-low cat, so you're telling me that after partaking in some illegal substances, you were so hard up for liquor that you called downstairs, you called room service at the Carlisle and asked for a 12-pack of Bud Light? That's right. Okay, okay. Room service may have come to the room. The only difference is when Post Malone, gets the alcohol delivered, somebody else signs for it and handles it. He doesn't have to look anyone in the eye, whereas I have to look at the exact dollar amount of how many hundreds of dollars a $9 12-pack of Bud Light costs in this fake world I'm living in. I don't want to put you on the spot here, but at 76th and Madison, between those hallowed walls, how much is a 12-pack of Bud Light going for? Do you remember? Because I kind of need you to remember. It was like $200. $200 for what exactly? For 12 Bud Lights. Like something I could go to Key Foods and buy for maybe under $10. Hold on. I thought maybe you had gotten an additional, you know, you'd gotten something else, maybe a little snack, maybe a late night Caesar. We got an additional, we just got some of those classic. Carlisle bar snacks, some chips, and some of those cheese. The Wheat Thin XL, as we were talking about earlier. Yeah, Wheat Thin XL cheese flavor. Okay, so you got some bar snacks. So we definitely had those. Yeah, we had two big buckets full of those, which are still sitting in my kitchenette suite right now, getting staler by the day. Did you get the nuts? Because if you have the nuts, I'd love for you to kind of messenger those downtown to me. No nuts. Because that's one of the best nut mixes in the world, is at the Carlisle. You're okay with the barbecue flavor?

It's strange, but because it's cut with some sweetness... It works for me. You typically don't play in the Seas of Mesquite. The Mesquite. No, and the other thing is the Carlisle has so many great bathrooms with nice hand soap available for me to kind of wash down doctor style after I touch barbecue that it's not really a problem. It does border on I need a shower territory, as you know, but I'm able to kind of resist that. Fellas, you ever eat a bag of nuts so loud you have to shower? after is kind of what you're saying that's exactly what i'm saying all right so you so you spent two hundred dollars on a 12 pack of bud light you woke up yesterday and then yesterday we had a full day of you didn't have a full day of action but you did have to come back downtown because you were djing the opening of the new sporty and rich lifestyle experience on green street in beautiful soho that's right that's right it was the first time i went downtown this entire trip took the the subway And I'm absolutely uptown-pilled now. I don't see how you people live in this cesspool known as anything below 75th Street. It's disgusting. It makes me sick to my stomach. I'm just constantly dodging the feces all over. I feel like I'm back home in Hollywood. I know. It does. What's the point? I understand that. But I'm glad that you were able to hit the cobblestone to bless us on the decks. And I feel like you... I've seen you DJ a lot in our relationship, and I feel like some of your best work is done when really hungover. I feel like you're looser. You're having more fun. We're all having more fun. Right. All bets are off. I'm betting with funny money. None of this is real. None of this matters. You guys are just lucky that I'm here physically, let alone producing audio at all. Yeah, Jason's on the ones and twos enjoying a nice thick piece of bread and butter that Chef Flynn McGarry has laid out on the table. Schlag-like. Drinking an orange juice. I mean, honestly, you were having the time of your life.

and it made me feel good. Yeah, hanging out with babies. Yeah, Matt Goldman brought his baby. There's a great photo of you, Matt Goldman, and the baby on BFA. Yeah, I took some videos as well. Follow me on Reels. But there was some sweet irony of me DJing the wellness mecca of the tri-state area. while having nothing well going on inside of my body. No. But luckily my brain is full of wellness, as said by my dope tunes that you heard. Yeah, it was a well-attended activation, but Oberg has been getting, I mean, the streets are ablaze. She's getting how long gone level press? There's a New York Times profile. There's a GQ profile. I'm sure there's a handful of other things rolling out, but... All joking aside, very, very happy for her. The store is pretty amazing. And her revenue is reported at $30 million a year. So I'm also deeply jealous. And those Birkins, she's paying for herself. That's right. And that's something I can't say for most of you hoes. So let's celebrate that when we can. Hair and nails, she pays for that herself. Car note. That's all her? There might be a couple cars. Independent. I stopped by the Sporting Rich Activation to check in on Jason, make sure he was still there, see Flynn, see Oberg, see the rest of the squad. There was a lot of similar faces from the Carlisle, which was nice, two days in a row. Crossover. Felt like we were in Ibiza or something like that. It did feel like that. Here we go again. I ventured to... I kind of crossed the... I scabbed. I crossed the picket line, which for me is the Williamsburg Bridge. I went to Brooklyn to celebrate Nordstrom and Stone Island. It was at a new-ish, I guess it's not that new, but a hot spot called Bernie's, a place I've never been before. I can't get a table there. I had a delicious veggie burger. The Caesar salad was amazing. I had a mozzarella stick that was delicious. It was kind of what I was craving.

But I was surrounded by streetwear goons, which was kind of a nice throwback. Saw a lot of people. A friend of the show, Dizza, was in the building because he's in the Stone Island mob. Yeah. So I guess that means you're kind of in the Stone Island mob as well, Chris, because you... Well... This was an elective appearance, right? Yeah, this wasn't paid. You weren't paid to walk through. But I will say, attention to detail, I just want to point this out because it was very cool. They had the tablecloths on all the tables were made out of Stone Island fabric. The famous proprietary Stone Island fabric, which is obviously waterproof. which works very well for any spills. What a lovely touch. Which I thought was a very clever touch. But yeah, I was out there a little later that I wanted to talking to the broskies. For Nordstrom's? Spare no expense. You can't spare any expense. But yeah, I actually had a really good time. I had a good time. I like the duality of these fashion events. I'm at the girls and the gays and the sporty and the rich and the famous and the healthy and the hot crowd. And then you're at the... Not schlubbier, but not not. You know what I mean? I just think that's funny. Considering I'm a schlub and you're a sober health and fitness guy. I got paid and you didn't. There's a sea change happening is what it feels like. A lot of the pants that Stone Island makes are luckily elastic waist. So it kind of allows. the wearer to relax into it so i see what you mean but i want to but i think what you're forgetting here jason is that i was able to attend both events that's because i'm a that's what you have to do when you're in demand you kind of got to tap in a man who can uh flip fuck who's versed exactly i'm a verse i'm a verse top when it comes to parties um but it did take forever to get there and it reminded me that i just couldn't take the train it didn't make sense but taking the train is truly the only way to get around i just can't sit in traffic it makes me fucking insane makes me insane i don't mind it i i cannot i like it really makes me crazy if i pay my hard-earned like [redacted address]

uh 0.8 miles i am air conditioning's on i'm drinking the fucking water i'm not looking outside at all i'm just like on my phone i'm i'm enjoying myself i'm making a meal out of it i get no i get that i totally get that i think it i i see both sides my shoes up on the dash i know you'd be balls and change hanging out you got the balls hitting the leather we do have a guest today We do have a guest today, and we're talking to a legend, an OG, the artist Jeff McFetridge, who we've all been fans of and seen for years and years. He's done everything from the titles in Spike Jonze movies and the version Suicides to the Milk Fed logo to Nike, Apple. et cetera, et cetera. He's also Canadian, which I didn't know. The Juice Place in Atwater. Yeah, exactly. He's a Calgary flamer. I didn't know this, but the way he met Spike Jonze, he was the art director of Grand Royal, which was a cult Beastie Boys magazine that is very collectible now, which I didn't realize he was involved with. But there's a new... a documentary about Jeff. It's called Jeff McVeter's Drawing a Life. I think it's coming out soon and is directed by a man named Dan Covert. But thank you to friend of the show, Bill Powers, the gallerist, for putting this together. I'm psyched to go to Gatwater and talk to Jeff. Yeah, as a fellow Atwater artist, of course, me working in the boomerang medium and Jeff kind of with the pen and the pad. It'll be sort of a pitcher's duel as to who has, you know, it's kind of like ultimate fighting, you know, like... I'm Jiu-Jitsu. He's Taekwondo. Yeah, yeah. That doesn't mean anything. It could go either way. I hear both. I mean, I want to find out also if – I think it will be nice to see who's got the bigger – I think we're going to pull out the credit card statements and kind of see who's spent more money at Proof Bakery. Just kind of see – because Jeff has a family, so he might be buying extra croissants for the kids. Sure. You know what I mean? But you have dogs, and I don't know what you're buying. They might have treats in there. I don't know what –

I don't know what it looks like. I don't go to proof anymore. They're mean now. We don't like employee-owned businesses. Let's give Jeff a call. They don't serve breeders there. Let's give him a Zoom. This episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by a new podcast from The Guardian stateside with Kai and Carter. This is covering a lot of our bases, Jason. It's trying to slow down. The news and wrestle with the questions we all have about what's happening in the world. And I know you particularly have quite a lot of questions. A lot of questions. But how often? Because we do this podcast three times a week and that's a sweet spot. How many times do they do? Three times a week. And I have a feeling just based on the platform and these talking points that they're maybe going to be covering different stuff than we do. That's just a guess. The Guardian is not some billionaire owned. They're not afraid to say what they want to say, brother. Yeah, Rupert ain't sniffing around in what journalists Kai Wright and Carter Sherman are up to over there at Stateside. But yeah, listen wherever you get your podcasts. You can watch it on YouTube. It's three times a week. And who couldn't use more news? You know, especially when it's not, you know, from here, let's say. Give it a listen. Give it a listen. Oh, this is huge for me personally. This episode of How Long Gone. It was brought to you by TaskRabbit. Oh, baby, let me tell you something. This is not a joke. I use TaskRabbit a lot because I can't do anything. You need some art hung? TaskRabbit. You need a fucking something put together, a cabinet? Got to reach that cheese grater on the top shelf? TaskRabbit. Anything you need, TaskRabbit can take care of it for you. And, I mean, how it works, TaskRabbit connects you with skilled taskers in your area. They can help you move. They can assemble furniture. repairs, yard work, mounting, and more. You can search for a Tasker based on cost, skill set, availability, and past client reviews so you know exactly who's showing up and can have confidence that they know what they're doing because Taskers have assembled over 3.4 million pieces of furniture, completed 700,000 home repairs, handled 1.5 million moves, and the numbers are just going up, Jason. Yeah, throw a little money at the problem. It's not so expensive, and that job that you really don't want to do is something that another person out in the world,

is very good at doing and would gladly do it in exchange for a little bit of money. So when life happens, your to-do list grows. Get ahead of it now and get $15 off your first task at TaskRabbit.com or grab the TaskRabbit app. using promo code howlong. Taskers book up faster, especially for same-day tasks. So book trusted home help today. That is $15 off your first task using promo code howlong with the TaskRabbit app or at TaskRabbit.com. Jeff, Jeff, do you have headphones? I'm sure you've made some in your time. Yeah, let me grab a collab. Yeah, let me grab the beat. Just give me one second. These came out in 2011, actually. They still work. This is actually the only non-collab electronic object in my studio. I'm just going to do that to be modest, you know? Sure, sure. Yeah, I like the modesty. It's nice to be modest. You feel like a regular human every once in a while. Yeah, you know. I'll just put on my audiophile-quality headphones. Jeff McFetridge, thank you for joining us. Jeff is wearing headphones. that make me think he has kind of a Japanese-style listening room in his house. Is that true? Are you an audiophile, Jeff? It's true. I'm not. I got some audio stuff there. I don't even want to talk about it. That's embarrassing. What do you mean? This is a safe space, bro. It's not embarrassing, Jeff. You've worked hard, and if you want to spend your money on a $20,000 preamp, that's on you, bro. The slippery slope is I did the Grand Royal turntable poster for Grand Royal magazine. So it was like I didn't intend to, like, be into turntables. So I, like, met and photographed every rare historic turntable in Southern California with a friend. And so I ended up with, like, this beautiful VPI turntable. And then you're like, oh, well, I'm going to get an amp. And then I ended up with this like, you know, just simple Marantz. It escalates. But that's the best reason I've ever heard to get into it is that you had access to the absolute best. And by the end of the process, you were just like, all right, fuck it. I got to get one of these. Yeah, no, I just sort of like chanced into it. And it is and it's like, yeah, it was like instead of waiting, it was like fast forward because it's like if you have like a techniques turntable, you're eventually going to be like, wait, what's a grown up turntable?

Sure, of course. There's always something better, and that's a big part of adulthood is making as much money as you can to always buy the thing that's better. It's a little bit of a tail chase, but that's really where we're at. You know what I mean? The older I get. Yeah, or the purpose of adulthood is to... carefully not do that okay well okay we haven't we haven't got to that page of the book yeah okay all right jeff you're a little older than us i've heard that's the later i've heard that that's the later pages when you like are like i'm getting rid of all the turntables and vintage cars oh okay when you go when you go into unload mode because you're enlightened and you don't need that crap anymore yeah i mean you don't need it but why get rid of it what what are you gonna do with it that's this is Give it to people who are lesser? Sell it to, like, the young collector mode. Yeah. There's always somebody that wants it more than you, is the reality. Especially if you've had it for a little while. But then when you sell it to that young collector, what do you use that money with? Do you donate it to the Red Cross? I know, it's true. Get out of here. No, he's got kids in private school and shit, Jason. We don't even understand what this guy's dealing with. This guy's got bills. Yeah, you're raising a horse girl, right? That shit ain't cheap. How do you know that? Instagram? Oh, no. Is your daughter an equestrian? My daughter is an equestrian, yes. This is daughter number two. I know. Jeff, you better get off the phone with us right now and start painting because that shit ain't cheap. Sell one of those Rimowas while we're chatting. Now, when this happened, is this something that maybe you and your wife were into or did she just discover it on her own and you guys have just been able to encourage her and she loves it? Daddy, what's the most expensive thing we can do? Daddy, I like yachts. Like, it's like you buy a children's book, like, E is for boat, and you go and buy a yacht, you know, the next day. What's Y for? H is for horse. Well, there are, there used to be these pony rides in Griffith Park, and it's like a terrible story, actually, that's a really interesting story, that it's recently closed down. And it's kind of controversial. But it's sort of like, if you could tell the story of Los Angeles.

by the story of the pony rides disappearing in Griffith Park. I didn't know they disappeared. That's like a thing that I've seen since I started coming to L.A. I feel like it's a pretty well-known. So is this like an animal rights issue, or was it like some weird government kind of inside baseball? Is it a Freemason thing? Yeah, I mean, I love a conspiracy, but there were people that were talking about it. about like animal rights but it's it weren't it wasn't people from within like the horse community so it's like you know they were talking about these ponies not being taken care of and i think like you know ponies are like a complicated thing like ponies actually like yeah working sort of and they like being all together so there was like there's a lot of things about the ponies um and but there were people that were just like get rid of all you know animals work for money or something sure and then also the park i think the park i don't know what's going on with griffith park but you know they're trying to build in they're just trying to expand the zoo like griffith park is this amazing resource in los angeles and it's meant to be wilderness yeah yeah but it's um there's always pressures on it so this pony rides which was really cute and tons of kids like my daughters learned to ride or learn to love oh okay that's like the original experience that's the original experience yeah And so now it's sort of gone, just like the public pool across the way is now closed, you know. So anyway, I mean, it's sort of an interesting story, but that was the gateway. And then my wife wrote when she was a kid. But it is also like, you know, your kids, like when you have kids, inevitably they're going to be into something. So like, are you going to be in a gym? Let's hope so. Yeah, hopefully. Best case scenario. Hopefully it's not leaving Reddit comments. Well, that's a bonus. That's like mandatory. Yeah, they could be doing first-person shooter games. Yeah, she sounds like she's having more fun. I guess I've always wondered about this because equestrian is something that is a little out of my purview. But if you're really into this and you're doing it, how old is she? Is she like 11, 12? My younger daughter is 14. Damn, all right. Damn, Jeff's got real kids, adult kids. All right, so she's 14. Yeah.

So how much time is, like, allotted? Is this, like, the main activity outside of school, basically? Yeah. Yeah, she rides every day. Okay. She rides every day. Oh, wow. Okay. Every day. Damn. I didn't realize. Okay. And is there a goal? Is this, like... Is this looked at as a hobby or is this like something that she's like, I want to take this as far as I can go? The goal is to liquidate the Wells Fargo checking. Yeah, I mean, we're just, you know, it's just like go until it's just totally bone dry and you're just like. You're like, Dad, have you heard of this brand Hermes? They make beautiful saviles. I don't know. Yeah, stuff like that. Yeah, exactly. I mean, like this type of stuff, like, I mean, talk to parents who have their kids in hockey. I mean, I grew up. in in canada and so kids played hockey and hockey is like it's no joke expense wise and and but it's really the time thing so it's like we spend time like when we you know i just dropped her off at the barn she's at the barn she'll be there all morning is that where is that her podcast studio pardon me exactly sounds like the name of her podcast studio the barn Coming live from the barn. Yeah, it does feel live from the barn, very much so. All right, so you drop her off at the barn. Okay, so you just drop her off at the barn. And she'll be there all day. So for us, it's like you spend time in a gymnasium somewhere. But yes, it is ridiculous. I mean, I could have a beach house or I could have daughters that know how to jump a horse. I mean... When you put it that way. Yeah, don't put it that way. Never put it that way. I just released my internal monologue. Whatever you do, do not do that. I didn't know you were from Canada, actually, until we were getting ready for this. And we're friends of North America's hat. So it's nice to have another Canadian join us. But Calgary is kind of one of the undiscovered gems. And it's funny that your daughters have become... equestrians because calgary is mainly known for the stampede is that is that correct yeah no i come from a very horsey place but like i i am not the horsey person in the family um uh

It's like more than a million people. Like as the price of oil per barrel goes up, the population goes up. So I think where we're at now, it's probably like right around a million people. So it's like, yeah, it's like, I guess that's like a small, I'm from like a small town sort of. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, as far as Canada goes, you could get, you could go prairie vibes, you know, and then it's really small. But Calgary is at least something people recognize. There's a hockey team and it is known for the oil export. You know, it's the Dallas. of canada or whatever well i would say edmonton is more so oh i guess that's true it's in the name whoa but that's that's where the hill people oil live though you know what's up with edmonton jeff you've been there i yeah i lived in edmonton for a while what yeah i prefer calgary to edmonton much more no offense to my edmontoners yeah no i mean they're really different there's like two there i mean it's like canada's amazing like that's the space between like road tripping in america yeah it's totally different like you're like this town the little town like like mountain town and then you know and in canada it's like town huge pause town nothing yeah yeah 11 hours of dirt yeah like i used to what i actually grew up in saint albert which is outside of emerson like a really tiny town okay so there's aspects of my childhood that are like really like like a kid's book where you play in a pond and yeah, real, like in the trees, picking, you know, picking berries all afternoon, you know, stuff like that. Oh, wow. Yeah. Like, and even to me, like, it's like, wait, is that like a dream? Like taking, I would take the train to visit my grandparents, like alone, alone. And it would be like a train, like a train, like. The only thing in your Ramoa is a teddy bear. Not a Ramoa vibe, more like a. Like a carpet bag, like satchel. Okay, he's going satchel with the tattered teddy bear dragging the ground. Yes, exactly. You made the picture. A Bodhi scarf wrapped around a small stick hung over your shoulder, something like that. Yeah, like Paddington. I was Paddington when I was a child. With just a few provisions for the train ride, you know, to make it through. A block of cheese, maybe some bread. A few cans of sardines, some really good butter. That's probably about it.

No, it was like bannock, you know, a piece of bannock and, you know, like bison jerky. Bannock? What is bannock? What is bannock? Bannock? That sounds like the last name of one of your hockey players. Bannock is like this, like, doughy, like, native, like, bread. that you like cook on the fire it was i guess that's yeah maybe that's this sounds this sounds delicious joey native bread yeah this sounds good yeah what what is the yeah it's like a fun camping thing to do what can you compare it to for maybe sounds like a blast a bread we would recognize just pizza dough or like i mean it's just like flour and water and yeah i don't know like yeah yeah the most oh got it got it got it damn okay so you would take the train but how long was this train ride like was this like an overnight train or is this a couple hours um this would be i guess the story I guess the story that comes to mind is like being put on the train by my parents and they would seat me next to like a native guy who like because there were always like native guys like traveling the train and they were always like they were these very sweet they would like basically like take care of you yeah but that seems kind of crazy now you know yeah yeah and uh so wait wait sorry sorry to interrupt when you say a native guy could you explain that exactly to our listeners who might not be aware like a like a native canadian right like a blackfoot indian right you know like that's who And I think now in retrospect, like, maybe they thought, because I looked like I had long black hair, and, you know, maybe they thought. You are giving native-esque. Yeah. Yeah, half Chinese. Basically, you're like a Beringian, you know? Like, I came the long way around. Sure. But, you know, same type of thing. Like, I recognize this guy. Your parents plop you down next to a native elder, and you go, are you my new daddy mode? And they look after you. Make sure you have three square meals a day. Well, it's like one. It's like, I don't know. It's like probably it's like a three hour drive. So on the train, it's like longer, you know? Yeah. But like this is like a very specific moment seated next to this guy. I was I was like probably nine or ten maybe. And then like so this is the memory I have. And then there's like a blizzard. And I remember being on the train and it stops because it's just on the open prairie. And just being on this train.

And it's like one of my early memories. And it seems like it's out of another century. But being on this train, it's starting to get cold. And the tracks are covered in snow. And I'm with this guy who's like, you know. It's just like, it's sort of an amazing, like there's aspects. It's sort of like when I started making art. there weren't computers sure it's sort of like sure sure sure you know what i mean like it's like this sort of like wait what like when i moved to la there were no cell phones yeah yeah yeah speaking of computers this sounds like you are going to be met with an oregon trail like fate yes and you're like this i'm not i'm not on you're eating you're eating jerky and your weird breads morale is low dysenteries Yeah, exactly. You can't ford the river because it's frozen. Yeah, exactly. We are too late to pass. Yeah. No, I don't know what happened, how we got out of it. Sometimes I think about how, you know, we're that generation of, you know, we know what life was like before the Internet. But you were really kind of like a great example of getting a healthy dose of life pre-digital age and now, you know, doing a good job. adapting to the current you know electric computer art kind of world yeah is that is that something you think about a lot i really do i mean i think it's like i feel very lucky because it's like you can be like way too early you know like like i think like the computers showed up like for me like i was making things as a kid And then once the computer came, you could really operate. For me, it meant, oh, I can just have a studio that's just me. That was because of the computer. Stuff like that. A generation just before me would be like, I need these resources to send stuff to press or produce things. Because I was into making stuff. I was really into doing design as well as making art. So the design aspect of it.

It could be really whatever I wanted. I didn't have to be like, oh, I need these clients and all these resources because the computer just sort of skipped a lot of stuff. The idea of laying out a magazine, like designing a magazine without a computer, I think for a lot of our listeners is a very... tough thing to wrap their head around um yeah does that mean that you just had a a lot of nice exacto knives and you were just kind of on the drafting table or or walk us through an issue you know like what does that actually look like i mean i never i didn't i didn't do like by the time i made magazines it was digital so i'm i'm both people but at the same time like i when i did my first snowboards like the first snowboard i made was a piece of paper like a board the size of a snowboard you know like it was like yeah i'm making a snowboard i don't know why that makes total sense but for some reason it's really funny i don't know because back then what else would it be the idea of you like crawling around on the floor trying to get from the bottom to the top with some you know colored pencils yeah i drew the thing and then you go like well then how is it colored so you do these layers on it and you feel and you tell the printer like this is going to be this color this is going to be this color And you spec it out and that's production ready art. So like I'm formed by this idea that I, my first art making was sort of like production ready art. So, and then, so there was production art and then there's art FPO art for position only. So for position only is like where you make something and you make notes on it and you'll say like, print this, print this. And then the printer takes it and makes all those separations and prints it. And so, but there's these stages. So like when you make the production art, it has to be perfect. Like that's going to go. Yeah. That's sports illustrated or whatever. Yeah. In Playboy magazine or whatever, all these things are in the entire world was made by things that were this high consequence, which I view as like a type of art making, right? Totally. No, it has no value. Like people would take Milton Glaser's production art that he sent for an album cover and throw it out. Like that was it. It was like, okay.

We took a photo of it. We got what we needed. We did what we had to do with this. And now we're going to clutter. Yeah. Yeah. That's kind of insane. That's kind of insane. When you think about that. Yeah. The second year I made snowboards, I was like, I'm going to do this with my computer, which was when I sent. So it was insane. Like you do preview mode in Illustrator and I'd go for dinner and come back and it would then show me like it was so brutal. And then it and then I when I sent it to press, the people. We're in Vermont or something that we're printing, making this numbers. They were like, no one's ever done this before. You've crashed our machines. You know, it's not possible. Oh, so you were basically like early because you had a computer and like, guys, there's a better way to do this. Yeah. You sent them the files and they're like, chief, we don't really know how to handle this. Yeah. They're like, yeah, like you could do one part of the snowboard. But like this is the entire thing was a graphic like a skateboard, which was also really unusual. People weren't doing people do like there was a logo on the tail. Right. You know what I mean? So that means like the actual like literal file size was a scale snowboard and computers back then did not handle, you know, like a six foot long JPEG. No. It would just crash their shit. Yeah, it was bombed. Damn, that's kind of cool, actually. Yeah, it crashed their shit, which is like now, you know, obviously that's it was probably like. four megabytes it wasn't actually that big we didn't have to mail the hard drive or anything but it was a different it was a different time yeah yeah i was just gonna say like there was many times in my like it just the time i was going into like when i was doing titles and i'm with the guy who we're doing optical titles like you can hear this banging upstairs and he's like yeah they're building the digital studio upstairs and i'm working with him on an oxbury which is like how they shot like the titles like i mean the guy probably shot the gone with the wind titles you know and you shoot it with a camera it's a similar spirit as like production ready art so you're saying you're saying if you're you're saying when you're doing titles for a movie you're building them

And then they're shooting them. There's not a computer element of it. It's all physical. That's what you're saying. Yeah. Like if you look at Buffalo 66, the beginning of Buffalo 66, it's all opticals that he did because it's like cool. And around that time, like when I did Virgin Suicides or Buffalo, like that sort of time in the whenever that was, like 2000s, that was the last days of optical printing for titles. Like they were still doing it. Like if you look at movies and they look like they look good, like they look, they have that like, oh, this looks like. Yeah. It has that texture and a little jitter. That was at the same time. I guess it's just a wave of digital stuff happening. Title-wise, is that something that some filmmakers still do because they fetishize it and it's cool? Yes, like Quentin Tarantino. If you care and you watch, you'll see it all the time, like Quentin Tarantino. Wes Anderson or they're doing optical printing. Yeah, I feel like you can kind of do that. You can kind of figure out who's going to be doing that and who's not. Yeah, for sure. It's the most Wes Anderson thing of all time to do. Yeah, and so then we have to go like, do we care? Like, do we care about things done? And I think it's like an interesting, like, I think it's interesting. Like, I don't think like digital stuff is fine. Like, I use like digital tools. all the time. I use all these different tools. I'm not a steampunk, but I do love... I just want to make it very clear. I'm not a steampunk, but I will build some shit. I will wear a top hat with a clock in it, but I wear it with something very contemporary. A Balenciaga buff. I mix. I mix. This episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Squarespace. Obviously, Jason, you and I spend a lot of time on the World Wide Web. So do our peers, our listeners, our friends, our colleagues, maybe even your parents if they're freaky. And if you're doing anything in the world, writing, taking pictures. I do topless boxing. You need a website. Exactly. A website that works, that does what it's supposed to do, that allows you to be creative but also business-minded.

Jason, there's one place to go for that, Squarespace. Yeah, Chris, I'm over here. I'm modifying calculators and putting Claude inside of them so you could cheat at school. And I just want a place where I could, you know, have everything all in one place. I can have the SEO tools so those future graduates can find me. And, you know, I'm able to accept, quote, unquote, donations for my services that might be gray area. You know what I mean? And then email campaigns. Hey, I got a new 2.3 version upgrade. Boom, boom, boom. Get the analytics going. Raise some money. Show your investor all of your cool analytics of what's going on. They're going to want to get in early. And we can use Blueprint AI to make your website look as professional as your competition, if not more. So head to squarespace.com slash howlong for a free trial. When you're ready to launch, use offer code howlong to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or a domain. All right, this episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Quince. Jason, the temps are warming up. It's getting hot out there. Summer always changes how I get dressed. I need pieces that feel lighter, more breathable, and they're just easy but still put together. I don't want to look like a slob. That's why I keep coming back to Quince. They focus on high-quality essentials that feel and look amazing. Breathable linen and soft organic cottons. Well-made basics, but without the luxury markups. That rare balance where everything feels elevated, but still effortless. Yeah, Chris, linen season is here. I wore a linen blazer to dinner a few nights ago in the warm California sun. But, you know, you got that Italy trip coming up this summer. And quality European linen pants and shirts. Upgrade that look starting at just $34. You know, if you get a nice linen suit, a little t-shirt underneath it, some chill shoes, you're looking good, but you're staying cool. The inside of your special areas are nice and dry as you turn up with your besties. So elevate that summer wardrobe. Go to quince.com slash how long for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns, even on a nice holiday now available in Canada.

That is Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash how long. That'll get you free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince punto com slash how long. I mean, I guess it's like they're really interesting art making tools. Like it's the same way as like like artists use like tools of fabrication. Like if you're Donald Judd, you're like, wait, the guys that make the vents in my building are artists. Yeah. Like it's incredible. you know? And I think like commercial art, there's a lot of art, like the way type is that optical printing. Like I would watch like an art film that was all done with optical printing, you know? And I think that there is, there are these, I think it's like understanding like tools is really important. Like mechanical sort of creativity is like super, I think interesting. And I think like it's using those with like concept, you know, conceptual thinking is like really what I'm like interested in. I mean, I feel like this is the most exposure I've had to this kind of conversation is like when people were mad that Juergen Teller started shooting digital. Yeah. And they're like, I can't believe he made it. And it's like the guy has done it long enough. He deserves to be able to experiment with something new. Yeah. Like it might change the way something feels to you, but I feel like it might. If you don't know, do you not notice is what I'm saying. If he wasn't talking about it, if he wasn't like, yeah, I shot all this shit on my iPhone, fuck you, would we actually know? Maybe, but most people wouldn't. It's about if you like someone's work, you have to trust their process to me. With photography especially, it's not about equipment. It's about the vision in the relationship to the subject. But I feel like that discussion was so – hotly, it's still hotly debated. And with all this stuff, there's a cost associated with it. We've gotten to the point where digital is a lot cheaper. So you're asking people to pay more or spend more to do it the old way, which seems counterintuitive to a lot of people, I think. I think that's a perfect example of we're in a very good place, I think, now with photography where you can just do whatever you want.

like it's sort of like a boring conversation and that's what you sort of want it to be because like i think there was the time yeah yeah yeah yeah you know when they saw all the developers like liquidating their equipment like everything was closing you couldn't get film and all that yeah like that's when there's becomes like that conversation gets really like like but now it's sort of nice because there's both no totally you know and i think i i think that losing like a knowledge is, like, sort of terrifying or losing resources for photographers, you know? I just think that there is a feeling, like you're saying. There's, like, a way. Like, the way you're describing those, the optical, like, it's like you feel it and you see it. And even if you don't know what you're seeing, you like it. Yeah, you know. You don't know why you like it, but you like it. Yeah, no, when you see, like, I see films and it's like they redo the titles because they've reformatted or something. And it's like, cause it's super crisp and like over, you know, 35 mil, you know, you know, it's like, yeah, yeah, of course, of course. No, no. I mean, I, I just think that that's, I, I being able to do both is, is the, uh, is, is the, the kind of the only way to move forward. I feel like, you know, yeah. Yeah. And get onto the snowboarding thing is interesting. Cause I feel like a lot of, a lot of your generation, like artists, like got like a lot of opportunities from skateboarding and snowboarding. Like graphic wise, like that, you know, and most of the stuff you're doing, was it for Burton? It was for Barfoot. I did work for Burton later, but there was this company called Barfoot, which is like, sounds like. Hold on, Barfoot? B-A-R-F-O-O-T? It was a guy named Chuck Barfoot. He was like a Santa Barbara guy. So Tom Sims, Chuck Barfoot, like they're these. Okay. You know, he started, he was like, he was maybe too early, but he was like an early days. Snowboard guy. Back when it was just pirates and vagabonds kind of vibe? Yes, it was very vagabond-y. Aspen wasn't settled yet. There wasn't a kith there. It was kind of choose-your-own-adventure. It was tough. There wasn't a kith. Snowboarding was banned.

at most yeah you know well this is this is top of mind for me because i recently watched the sean white documentary on hbo which is actually quite good and i didn't know i was honestly i i didn't really know much about him and it was pretty interesting but the the there's a big portion and they had like news footage of like guys that work at the the ski like at the at the mountain basically being like we got to get these snowboarders the fuck out of here like we got to ban these guys this is causing a fucking problem and then of course snowboarding booms you know and and but i feel like now it's it's like skiing is cool again yes and snowboarding isn't quite as cool is that just like the way it works with every trend yeah i guess it does i mean i guess it's yeah because if you think early days of snowboarding when they were talking about get these guys it was like snowboarding was like It came out of, I guess, a little bit of, like, there were Santa Barbara guys, so it came out of surf culture, and it was, like, homemade. I didn't know that. Yeah, it's weird. I didn't know it was a Santa Barbara guy. Very weird. And I mean in Veronica, Chuck Burton. But, yeah, your snowboards were, like, really homemade. So if you think about that, like, oh, wait, when something's, like, homemade, and you're wearing Sorrells, and you're sort of, like, you know what I mean? And then for us, we were all, like, skaters. So, like. it was like wait nobody's making money off this get them off the mountain like not like those the ski patrol weren't like thinking like capitalists but like the culture at large was sort of like wait there's no room for this you know yeah um but then it once it becomes um yeah it sort of it becomes like oh wait we can like double the amount of people that want to come to the mountain it sort of changed yeah And it's, I guess it was, it seems more dangerous, but it's also, like, I think that's because people are choosing to do tricks, you know, versus just, like, going fast. Yeah, exactly. Where it's all pretty fucking dangerous. Yeah, it's all fucking dangerous. I mean, it's just, like, whoever, like, luckily, like, skiing exists already. Like, no, you couldn't start a ski hill now. Like, seriously? Like, it's, like, it is really, you know, like, there's rocks everywhere. And there's, you know, like. Yeah, it's terrifying. It's, you know, it's truly, like. But, yeah, I mean, I think skiing, like, the reality is, like, skiing.

like both are good but like skiing is there's like skiing changed because of snowboarding so ski what we have in skiing now oh i see yeah is like we skiing sort of we stole a lot of really good like the turn shapes and uh like the sort of the spirit yeah a lot of snowboarding became like ski like went into skiing where um like shape skis came about or like so interesting skis with a big side cut and fatter skis so there's all this stuff that skiing learned from snowboarding so skiing is sort of it's easier and it's you have you sort of have best of both worlds because you can like walk around you know you're not like sure strapped to your death yeah you're not like yeah because you're a big you're a big skier right i love skiing yeah but i feel you're like an athlete and you're a runner too aren't you i yeah i have a lot of hobbies but yes i run and yeah i love skiing my man Okay, so... Okay, so you have a lot of hobbies. Activities. Let's run down. Let's kind of run down. Are they physical in nature most of the time, or is it like brain exercises, puzzles? What are you running from, Jeffrey? Completely ignore the brain. No brain day. No brain day. Legs only. Yeah, so you have leg day, chest day, never brain day. That's cool. Never brain day. I don't have chest day either. Jason doesn't have chest day either. You guys have some. than in common i also don't have leg day but but i do a lot of brain stuff yeah jason's big on brain stuff i guess speaking of the the evolution of of the way we all make money doing you know various forms of art do you do you consider yourself now to be an influencer in so many ways no um but i guess i did like i i i mean i transitioned like another thing of like the digital transition like I can say like Instagram really did change my life. Yeah. You know, like in a positive way, like like my friend Eric Schatzky, he's like, there's this thing called Instagram. It was really early days. And I just used it to communicate with like five friends of like we went to the park today, you know, but like it really did like on like the activities thing or drawing, you know, like, yeah, like the reality is like my brain is like drawing every day. So what I could share like my influencer.

uh thing would be sharing little tiny drawings in my sketchbook that no one ever sees and then a little bit like i went like skiing or skating or you know like it does show like actually what i spend tons of time doing you know yeah um i don't really put my family on there just because it feels like well this feels sort of sketchy yeah um for sure i don't put it like family photos or whatever but i've always liked this idea Like I've done, like in the past, I've like done talks. Like if I get asked to go to a college, like I'll do a talk and I'll just try to explain my process and, or I'll agree to do interviews, which for me is like, it's like, well, of course you would, but it's not really like in a lot of ways it's like uncomfortable, right? Like it's uncomfortable to have to articulate yourself or have someone come into your studio and photograph you working. And it's sort of easy to say no to that stuff. And I've always felt like, nah, don't. Just because it makes you uncomfortable doesn't mean like just like you'll get better at it or you'll get comfortable or like work it out, you know, work a way to have this public conversation. And so when Instagram came about, it was like, oh, well, I can just take a photo of something that shows like some aspect of myself is like this sort of like, you know, truthful or something. So you got to be more in control of your public persona. You didn't have to use people who come into your home. Yeah. And undocumented in a very like sort of lazy way. Um, but yeah, I think people understood me more and you could see that I basically was just this whole side of my life that not even my friends knew, you know, like, yeah, like I had tons of friends that didn't know I skied or what I did. Like, I don't have like a website really, or, um, I wouldn't have, no one knew anything I did, like any of the projects, unless you were like in my studio, like literally, I mean, there's still like thousands of things in my studio. No one has ever seen. And people, I mean, most people, don't even know what you didn't even know what you looked like. Oh, absolutely. I could walk past you on the street and not even know that it was you. No. Yeah, absolutely. There was like five photos of me on the internet or something. Yeah. I mean, I've known of you for years and I haven't seen what you look like until today. Yeah. You know what I mean?

What's up, bro? I'm Jeff. Cool to meet you. And I lived in Atwater Village for almost 10 years. You know what I mean? I probably walked past you 5,000 times. I know. It's crazy, right? And it's funny because when I looked at photos of you guys, and we have never met, I was like, these are guys that have been at the cafe. These are those guys. that mix though these are the guys tacos via corona like i just don't know you know but like yeah yeah yeah sure that's absolutely true that's absolutely true but i think that's i think the instagram i think using instagram in that way especially for for artists is is pretty important but i mean i i think the process is like it's like going into a studio to watch a band play you know record if you have no business there it's kind of like all right, cool, you guys are killing it. I'm going to head out because it's fucking boring. You know what I mean? Yes, absolutely. And I'm sure that looking at your own process, you're like, yeah, I sketch this shit and then I paint this thing. It's not that compelling to you, but understanding that you need to share it or feeling compelled to share it. is a is is has worked out you know and it's important i think now because there's that pressure to do it yeah yeah and i think it's like i mean i think it's transitioning like i think it's like now i feel like oh man i i don't i'd rather i'd like to get rid of it or something yeah but like but you still look back at that moment where it's like i don't have to just like like now i do use it more like oh there's this show but i i do it less for like little tiny postage stamp like drawings that was the original magic yeah yeah like i could share things like no one would ever like really really know like yeah maybe no one knows what i look like but also like no one ever would see this postage stamp size drawing and that felt like something that like in the history of people in my position who were like like making art like so it's like oh you have a show so that's how people see your art that was the first or you do commercial projects and it's like oh the band decides they liked that logo so they know that thing you did like all these things outside yeah it's just about that control and so it's like this is the first time that it's like i can just

post this little thing and i think like now that's sort of yeah now i think now we have algorithm we have it's like no now we gotta we gotta guess we gotta get you out of that shirt jeff that's how you're gonna get the likes bro let's see let's see that here's body you know what i mean on main that well that's kind of what i'm interested in because when i was talking about before about coming from you know the pre-internet era of of being an artist and like back in the day you would just like hey i made this movie title or this skateboard or this Apple Watch thingy or whatever it is, and you just make it and the company pays you money and you say thank you and that's it. But now when you do it, and we were joking about headphone collabs earlier, you can't just design a pair of headphones and cash your check and say that's it. It's like... implied that you're going to do some content on Instagram around the process of you designing it. It's going to be a whole thing now where back then it just didn't exist at all. Do you miss that? Or do you kind of like having a little extra step? Yeah, I mean, I used to pressure clients to credit me. I would do projects in the past 10 years where I'd be like, I can't believe. that they they won't even credit me you know like in like they send it for awards or something and my name's not on it oh wow you know like that okay and it seems like wait that's hard to believe like people are gonna hear this and be like that's work for hire baby they don't give a shit dude yeah they don't care we paid you a lot of money i mean yeah i think the thing about as you know like like jason said like you've you've been doing this for a very long time we're pretty aware of your career but like there's like a certain style that you've developed that's pretty recognizable that i feel like it would be almost weird to not credit like it's like oh is that a fake did you get a fake jeff to do this or did you get you know what i mean like why would you not but do you think it's just like they want the correct they want it to be like a faceless kind of like this is what we made or or is it deeper than that well i think it's like that was still it was still tied into this tradition of like commercial art that there was like it's hard to believe that it was like

There was this very broad description of art that wasn't fine art, that was anything commercial. My career has been about breaking down that understanding. There were things that I would do where it was a campaign or packaging or something that was clearly what you described. It totally looked like I did it. That was very deliberate. I was developing this body of work that was like, yeah, no, you can tell I did it. But, you know, clients would still at that point give me like, OK, this is what like we want it to be like. And I would just sort of ignore it because, you know, because they would they were still in this old mode where they were like, yeah, we have this brief. But the reality is like griefs are like shouldn't the artist come up with the brief? You know, and that's like, you know, like that's why you would come to me. And so there's all these things that like over the past like two decades have sort of devolved into my benefit. But at the very beginning of it, it was like, here's a brief. Show me five different things. And they look all different. And we're not going to credit you. And then we get to the point now where it's like, you know, collabs, right? So it's like, it's just like, make something compelling. Make a video about it. Talk about it. Explain what it's about. Like, there's no brief. You know what I mean? But you're basically doing the same thing, like in a different way, but at the same, you're sort of going. And then there are people doing still pure design that are not getting credit. right there's people like designing packaging you know like i have friends who are actual real designers and you know they're doing packaging and they don't get any credit unless they put it on social media and then they'll get in trouble for doing that yeah exactly yeah then they get sued yeah cease and desist i guess i guess back in the day you know those those brands like they consider themselves you know if i like some you know middle management person at nike i i am an artist who didn't do what i wanted to do in life and now i have this job yeah but i'm going to be an artist and my art is hiring jeff mcfetrich to do this thing exactly and i'm exactly i'm gonna get a fucking hard-on telling him what to do because there's this many zeros on the check yes and and and now it's just like you just do everything yeah and then we'll put your and then you could sign the bottom of it

And we'll have a little party. Yeah. No. And those previous, there was nothing. Yeah. Yeah. That's a, that is like a dark read on, but that's a, that is a sort of reality, I guess for some of it. Um, but that was also, I would say that was way more in this transitional time, like the really uncomfortable time. Cause now you have like the, any people that I'm working with, like in class are sort of like more like sort of native to this, the new sort of paradigm of how things are made and this understanding that. It's like design, art making, marketing, like it's all like one sort of thing. At this point, I think it's maybe we're in our last days of it. But like it is like it has been this viable way for me, like like keeping those sort of projects in the mix as well as like art making has been worth it. You know, like I do spend more. I noticed in the past few years I spent way more time just painting. And I think it's like. maybe because those sort of days, like, as again, like I'm sort of been early to a lot of this stuff and I think I've got to reap a lot of benefits of like different aspects as culture sort of turns. Like I'm sort of like, so I do feel like things are turning where it's like, maybe it's like, I mean, it could be simply described as like, we're burned out on collabs, but it's also like, I think like culture is sort of changing. Like it's like less, it's less loud. It's less arresting. It's less, it's just less impactful. Yeah. But I, but definitely like, it's been like, It's really fun to work on paintings at the same time I'm working on something that's basically like a painting, but it's going to be on a shoe or some sort of product. One for you, one for them. Well, in the spirit of being in the last days of something, have you typed in, draw this blank in the style of Jeff McFetridge onto Mid Journey? oh i have not uh people have for when it first hit people would be like i made this and they'd send it to me which is sort of like demented like um just the way people send me like have you seen this guy and it's someone who's like entire career is based on like like doing art that looks like like people are like why did you send this to me no people love that's like when they they send me reddit comments about how much people hate me i'm like i don't

I don't look at this for a reason, so I don't need you to send it to me again. It doesn't work that way. And do you do that to other people? Absolutely not. I would only send a flattering photo or a glowing review. I'm not going to redistribute bad information if you're my friend. You know what I mean? I feel the same. It's crazy. But I do feel like definitely like AI is going to be very hard on the people who like. I do have careers that are based on copying me and other people, maybe. That's going to be really hard on them. They're like, wait. That's going to be tough. It's going to be hard on all of your sons across the world with Adobe accounts. All the guys with Adobe subscriptions are fucked. It's true. They can discount that starting pretty soon. Now, what does your day-to-day look like? Is it just like I get up and I paint and see what happens? Or is it a little more regimented than that? oh my god regimented uh i'm very regimented you seem like a type you're a type you're a type a ass motherfucker so what time you end up at 5 30 and cold plunging and shit what are we doing no no i'm really not type a i'm not a type a guy but i am i'm i'm i'm like a non-type a guy so i that hat so i know like routine like works well for me you know what i mean we're big jason and i are big routine guys too that's a big part of the show yeah um i i'm it it throws Jason was having a tough time on his honeymoon because he's like, I can't go to the gym. I don't have my sauna. The food is crazy. It was pure hell. It was pure hell. So you have things you do every day, though, that kind of put you in your zone. Yeah, I joke. Now I know you guys engage in that stuff. I joke. We had some friends in town. I was like, the wellness routine may bleed well into the afternoon. You know what I mean? Like it can go like, oh, you know, went for a run, stretched, had like second breakfast, like which is like a smoothie. And then you're sort of like into like do a little work, reply to emails, then you're having lunch. And so it starts, you know, then have like a healthy lunch. You know what I mean? Like it's like wellness routine. So you're just living a normal life. Got it. Okay. Basically, it's a pretty normal life. Yeah, yeah, exactly.

um but yeah i do something every morning that's like the sort of activities thing like so yeah depending on my focus but it'll be most like lately it's been like it was like like really serious cycling for a long long time um but that sort of varied like now i like i drive my daughter to school in the morning so i'm like in the car so i don't want to have a bike so like it more trail running which i've been doing for a long time as well you're not so you're not in the gym you're an outside workout guy no i've been to a gym like i've been to church twice and i've been to a gym like three times like i well actually i like i for a while i went to the i which i know you guys go to the undefeated gym right we did i did during covid yeah because it was like the only thing open because they were breaking the rules okay but i i love it's so beautiful it's such a nice facility yeah i used i did one experiment where i went to the gym Cause I trained, I was, I went, I did Mount Whitney, like Mount Whitney in a day. Yeah. And I was like, and I've always been like, and I, yeah, just strictly outdoors guy. And I was like, I'm going to train entirely for Whitney indoors in the gym, just as an experiment. Cause I knew like, whatever, like I've done other stuff and it was, it was pretty cool. And then obviously I was done. I learned how to, like, lift weights. And you just did that? Did you just do that for Instagram content? Like, I'm going to do Whitney today. Get ready with me. Yeah, I didn't put that on Instagram. Like, for example, nobody knows I went to the undefeated gym. I didn't take any, like, weird, you know. There was one photo that I did Whitney that my friend took. of me at the base which i was debating like i'm not putting it but i didn't put like a summit photo or no summit photo that's that wow that that is that is did you hashtag snow peak or anything like what are we doing here leaving money on the sponsors yeah you're leaving money that's my style see that's like i'm not type a i definitely am like leave money on the table guy got it that's well that i mean if you're in a position to leave money on the table and life is going well that's the thing that's that's a sign of success is how i look at it or is it just being dumb

i don't know well both a little bit of both but yeah these are the questions that keep us up at night jeff i know i wanted to talk about your relationship with spike a little bit just because i feel like it's so like long running yeah and i saw that he kind of hosted his screening and i just like how did that relationship start with grand royal it did i actually didn't I didn't know him. I started with, like, because he owned Girl and Chocolate Skateboards. So I was doing graphics for them, like, in the late 90s. But I didn't really meet him. He was, like, by that time, he was already sort of, like, sort of gone. Like, he was making videos, and he was, like, sort of really busy. Like, sort of his film career was starting. And so strangely, like, I did, like, I started working for Sofia when him and Sofia were married. I was working for Girl in Chocolate, and then I did Virgin Suicides, and I was doing stuff for her clothing brand Milkfin, and I still hadn't met Spike. So, like, because he was, like, in a different circle. And I was doing stuff for the Beastie Boys, so I'd get in photo stories, and it'd be photos of Spike. and then when he did his when he did being john malkovich he like reached out and like i started working with him then and then i sort of did something for him on every film since and he became like we became close and i feel really lucky to know him like it's only in retrospect you're like oh wait that's really lucky to have someone like spike as like a Like someone you could truly look up to, like the way he operated, like the way he did his career. And then also just like asking him for advice. No, it's a very enviable career path. Like it does feel like it feels I think there's some people that are able to do the money stuff and make it look very fun and cool. And I think you're you're in that boat. And I'm sure that some of that rubbed off. You know what I mean? It's like I think he's in that boat. Yeah. Like Sophia's in that boat. You know, it's just like I think some people make it look good. And especially in today's world where we're just like...

Just constantly hit in the face with people doing stuff for money in a way that feels extremely clear what the situation is. I think that there's people that have learned to do it with the right touch. It's like, yeah, I'm going to direct a commercial that's going to be on TV during the Super Bowl, but it's going to be cool and interesting, and I'm going to make it good. I think that's a big thing that we could learn. Dream come true. Yeah, as a society. no i think it's like really getting to it's like looking at like like a savant at like make exactly that like i'm gonna do a commercial like yeah people look back and they're like oh this great music video bit i never saw it but that is really interesting to watch him do like i did i worked with him on like a bunch of stuff for lee jeans yeah and so like i it's like that's the hard stuff like for that you're spike jones and you don't say no to lee jeans But what you know what I mean? Like, what do I do? Like, what's the idea? Like, what's the concept? Yeah, for sure. How do we make it interesting and compelling? And how does he talk to the client? Like, it's not like he's never like, I hate them. I'm fighting with them. Or it's this collaborative, positive vibe, which is like what you have to have. Like now it's like when I work, like for me, it's like you work with Apple. Like, of course, you're not going to fight with Apple. But of course, Spike wasn't going to fight with the Lee Jeans agents. Yeah. You know what I mean? Even though they weren't like super, you know, they weren't like super impressive. But like getting to see that or like how like, yeah, Sophia Balanced, like how she's going to spend time writing, but then she's going to like make a film and do commercials and she has a brand. And so like getting to, you know, when she was doing Milk Fed. And so like, yeah, getting to see them, you know, really navigate that world is like. was really was really lucky and I think now it's like sort of a given like now we live in a time where it's like oh yeah like if you're a band it's like yeah license the song like of course you know and at the time it would be like when you like when I was I would work in animation and you'd like reach out to a band and be like are they gonna say yes like like tons of bands would be like no even though they were broke you know and

turn down $60,000 to license their song. Thank God those days. There's a fine line, don't get me wrong, but thank God those days are over. I think so. It's sort of like a boring, it's sort of like the film versus digital debate. It's sort of like nothing comes to this. I saw there was this big opinion piece this week in The Guardian about Barbie, and they're like, Greta Gerwig was an indie. They basically were killing Greta Gerwig for directing Barbie because she used to be indie. I'm like, what the fuck do you expect people to do? Yeah. If you call me, if you call me and say, direct Barbie, you can do whatever you want. You got to do that. Like, there's no world in which you don't do that. I just don't. I can never understand that, especially in today's society, like where we're at. Yeah. Culturally. No one has time. Like, OK, let her make a mistake. Like, it's just like, let's just keep going, like make more stuff. Like, and that's the way I feel about AI. Like, fine. Like, like just, I destroy everything. We'll start again. Let's go. Let's go. Let's do better. Let's like, let's be the AI. Let's just keep going and not like those conversations are so like anything I feel like that gets in the way of like making something you have to question. Like you just question it, you know? And I think that's like when, when your rules, like if you're straight edge and it means there's a lot of stuff you can't do or. you have to start questioning it. And when you have like, like this sort of ideology of making things, it's like, Oh no, it's like a sellout. Like you have to like, yeah, have that discussion, but question it extra if it means you're not doing something. I think it's a confidence thing. I think it's about being like, like, like what you're saying about, about spike. It's like, well, I know I can make this something that I feel good about. So I'm going to do it. Like there's no downside if you approach it like that, I guess is what I'm trying to say. Like if you approach it like I'm going to do the best job so I feel good at the end of the day and everyone's happy, then like there's no downside. Yeah. No, and I'm sure he would have reasons like probably like if you look at his first films, like there's scenes in like adaptation, there's like a car wreck.

that I think about all the time because it's really important in Los Angeles. Like when you pull out of your drive, like someone pulls out of the drive and they get smoked. And it's like, that is how you die in LA, right? But also because the way it's shot, it's so violent and scary. And it's like, yeah, he learned that scene. It's like, maybe it's not that important in the film. But it's really cool how good it is. And he learned that making commercials. I see what you're right. Yeah. So like Greta Gerwig, like it's like you go like, well, what? She's going to learn the mechanisms of like mega, mega movie. It's valuable. You know what I mean? And yeah, it's a valuable. That's a valuable tool when she goes on to make like the most mega art movie ever. Right. It's like a building. It's a bill. It all feeds each other. It's like a building block kind of situation. Jeff, speaking of speaking of music syncs, I wanted to ask you. What high dollar things did you turn down back in the 90s when you were averse to selling out that you are now regretting? Oh my God. Yeah. I mean, just like not answering the phone. I look at, oh my God. Like I have like a crazy archive of like, like I keep everything like, and I was going through it and like, like putting it away, like cleaning out the studio. And I'm like, yeah, it's just like, I don't know, like stuff like Apple. calling me to come talk to their design studio and just not even replying and like like yeah like i like i found like faxes from a woman she was in oh like virgin like it was like virgin music like she was like we we really wanted like it was someone from virgin like truly just trying to get in touch with me and that's like not a big deal but just the fact that like there was just so much stuff i just didn't even respond to like but why I don't, I mean, I think that there's a benefit. Like I've always sort of paced myself by being like, sort of like in my own world. Like, so I have this like very natural pace, but I also know how much I can take. So I was, I'm sort of like doing enough. And I think my brain like did a lot of editing. So there was a lot of stuff, like opportunities maybe like I didn't take. But it was sort of for this purpose. Like I feel like I can't, like I don't have like a ton of,

especially i think i have more capacity now but like i just was sort of overwhelmed like i was like learning how to i definitely feel like i like sort of i spent a lot of time learning how to be like a human being like way more like i look at young people now they've like all right look at my daughter i have a 20 year old daughter and she's just so functional and she's so like i can ask her advice about like life advice and she's like yeah yeah don't talk to people like that and do that and like like this and like that stuff like i just didn't i wasn't capable of and that and i mean it's like how does that relate to like turning down opportunities but it was like because i was sort of like too busy like growing up i feel like until i was 30 yeah or even past that that it was like i just that there wasn't i couldn't i wasn't really capable of of taking on a sort of maybe a sort of like an art career that was more planned out or like deliberate you know so i'm sort of stuck with uh like a rambling like uh feel my way um sort of way of like being who i am now but there's no wrong way there's no wrong way or right way it worked out well yeah that's what i'm saying yeah i mean i i'm happy i mean it's just at least it's like it's like i think it's like building a tree house right it's like oh like bang it's like oh i like to put my coffee cup like it's like the trees like You build around the tree. You don't like cut off limbs or anything. You build around the tree. You like when you want to like, oh, I need a place for my water bottle. You find a piece of wood and you like hammer it in and you put it there. And so you do end up with this like. You know, you don't end up with a today-o-endo, beautiful, you know. Yeah, sure. It works for you. It works for you. It works for you. Then that's all that matters. No, Jeff, thank you so much for joining us on How Long Gone. We really appreciate it. And we'll take you over to proof for Gibraltar, you know, in the near future when everybody's back in L.A. Nice. Thank you so much. Yeah, Jeff, do you get free juice for life at the Juice? I do. Fucking better, right? Yeah.

He's like, yeah, that's the fucking trade-off. I will do a mural for free, too. Noted. Noted. All of our entrepreneurs listening, Jeff will do a free mural. Go. Yeah. You guys let us know. Did we edit that out, actually? I need to take that out. No, Jeff, thank you for joining us. It was a pleasure. And we'll talk to you soon. See you soon. Yes. Talk soon.